Mother of accused teen in craigslist murder-robbery plot speaks out

The mother of a Summit County teen, who's accused in a craigslist murder-robbery plot, spoke to NewsChannel5 about the allegations.

WEWS

WEWS

Copyright 2011 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

WEWS

Copyright 2011 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

WEWS

Copyright 2011 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

WEWS

Copyright 2011 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

WEWS

Copyright 2011 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

AKRON, Ohio - The mother of a Summit County teen, who's accused in a craigslist murder-robbery plot, spoke to NewsChannel5 about the allegations.

We first told you about this story last week, where a man responded to an ad on craigslist and was shot.

It all began in October, when a Florida man was looking for a job on a cattle farm just east of Columbus.

After answering that ad in person, the Florida man was never seen again.

On Nov. 6, police said a South Carolina man answered a similar ad for work on the same southeast Ohio farm, but when he got to Ohio, he said two men pulled a gun on him and opened fire. He was shot in the arm, but escaped and notified authorities.

that's when investigators found the body of the Florida man buried in a shallow grave.

Last week, police arrested two suspects. One of them, police said, was a 16-year-old from Stow-Munroe Falls High School.

The teen's mother said the other suspect, 52-year-old Richard Beasley, was her son's mentor.

The teen's mom told NewsChannel5 she can't imagine her son ever hurting anyone.

"I've never ever had that thought or fear and I don't know what the situation is. I've not really been able to talk to him without recordings, cameras and without an attorney. But I know one thing my son loves helping handicapped people, he loves helping elderly and he has a big heart."

The mother says Beasley was a longtime family friend, for more than 20 years. Her son will be back in court at the end of the month to answer to the charges.

Copyright 2011 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

A judge in Ohio must make a life-or-death decision in sentencing a self-styled street preacher for the murders of three down-and-out men lured by Craigslist job offers. You can watch a live stream on newsnet5.com or app.